West Overton parlor talk will feature baseball
With spring training underway and the regular season scheduled to start in just a few weeks, what better topic for a parlor talk at West Overton Village and Museums in Scottdale than baseball?
“It’s still considered our national pastime,” said Jim Haller, who will speak about the professional and personal aspects of the sport in a parlor talk called “Growing up with Baseball in Pittsburgh.”
Haller, of Shaler Township, will deliver a 45-minute presentation at 2 p.m. March 13 in the Overholt Room of the Distillery Museum. A question-and-answer period will follow. Admission is a $5 suggested donation. Light refreshments will be served.
Haller is a longtime volunteer at the Heinz History Center, where he leads tours through exhibits that include the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum. He’s also a long-standing and highly respected member of the Society for American Baseball Research.
And as a kid, Haller loved to play the game.
“I think a lot of kids have lost interest in playing baseball in an unorganized fashion,” said Haller, 70, who recalled neighborhood youths waking up, calling each other to come outside and play baseball until it was dark.
Haller also played Little League and began collecting baseball cards when he was 8 years old.
He loved watching the Pittsburgh Pirates play. His favorite player was Dick Stuart, who played first base for the Pirates from 1958-62.
“He was very cocky, very brash and he could hit home runs far,” said Haller, telling a story of Stuart receiving a standing ovation when he snagged a hot dog wrapper that blew across the field on a windy day. “His nickname was Dr. Strangeglove.”
Stuart was part of a team that can trace its history back to 1876 when they were known as The Pittsburgh Alleghenys. There’s a story behind the name change to Pirates, and Haller promises to reveal it at his parlor talk.
He’ll also tell stories about how the Pirates became a great ball team, starting with a new owner in 1897.
The Pirates made it to the first World Series in 1903, playing the Boston Americans. The Pirates lost the series 5 games to 3 in a best-of-nine series.
Since then, the Pirates have had several World Series winning teams — the last in 1979.
In recent years, professional baseball in Pittsburgh has had some ups and downs.
“Football and hockey took over, especially in the last 20 years when the Pirates were losing. Here in Pittsburgh, Steelers are the No. 1 team,” Haller said.
But things have been on the upswing for the Pirates in recent years as the team began having winning seasons.
“Since Andrew McCutchen has been with the team, things have been turning around,” said Haller.
And with the season soon to start — the home opener is set for April 3 — more Pirate history is waiting to be made.